Responded in much appreciation and gratitude to those who have responded to my product.

Cannot stop thinking now, cause I’m on a roll.

Writing again, but this time putting all my cards on the table.

While reading, which we all know is a pre-requisite for writing I came across Chris Brogan‘s blog post entitled “100 Blog Topics I Hope You Write.” While on one of many flights he came up with a list of only 100 topics that he wishes bloggers / writers / journalists would blog about.

Why would a successful CEO, social media guru, public speaker and blogger want you to write about his topics? According to Chris, “If we’re going to show people how to use social media to drive meaningful conversations instead of being yet another marketing tool, we have to run out and educate at a break-neck pace, so we can bring more and more thought leaders into alignment with these big and not-so-big organizations who could use our help.”

I believe in writing, communication, connecting and what better way to do that than to contribute to the education of thought leaders?

Chris thank you so much for your suggestion and rest assured that your hope will see fruition, at least to a small degree in Fort Smith, AR.

More times than I can count, I’ve been asked what the formula for writing, marketingand/orsocial media is/are. I laugh to myself, because that is like asking for a description or manual for life. It’s not an ABC kind of thing.

You start with 26 symbols (the alphabet), add 72 more (numbers & punctuation), then allow for spliced words, jargon and just try to being to fathom the almost innumerable outcomes, add the ability to erase, cut, paste, etc. and there really is NO limit!

But I can give you the first few steps and then you can take it from there:

Think

Write

Think

Edit

Think

Publish

Think

Market

Think

Respond

Think

Write

And so on …

Funny you may notice that it all has a lot more to do with thinking that writing. I’ve heard it said don’t think just do, but I find that going back and forth between the two is highly effective.

While checking up on my favorite blogs, I ran across an opinion that stuck with me, but the author’s name escapes me. What didn’t fade in the one million +1 details of my day is this: our perspective is what shapes our attitude and ultimately our lives.

Our circumstances change, this we all know. However, our perception of our circumstance changes even more readily . My Facebook friend Jennifer Clement sent out a link for everyone to test their perception of color. I took the quiz and scored a 36 and was disappointed, but just as small changes in color can be indiscernible to the eye, so goes our slight and constant change in perception. That being said those slight changes are what color our attitude and therefore our lives.

Have you ever noticed that when you get motivated things get done, whether they be for the better or the worse?

This week I, Annie Sells, became motivate to make some changes in my life and as a result I took it upon myself to change the color of my home office. Previously it was the same color as my dinning room – terracotta. Today it is a blank slate thanks to two coats of primer (purchased at my local Yeager’s Ace Hardware store.) Before weeks-end my office will be a very pale shade of lavender. Of course that change: terracotta-to-white-to-lavender is far from indiscernible.

Yet remember this: when you get bogged down or tied up by your circumstances, remember that you have the power to change your attitude. If that means motivating yourself to white out your perception and start again, then do it. Look around you. Do you like what you see? If not then get motivated and paint!

May 9 – 16, 2010 was a whirlwind. No sooner than I take an awesome day-time job, things in my personal career and life take off! Go figure. Take the leap of faith to do what is best for my family and my career takes off. Am I complaining? No way.

This week I have finished off a contract with one clients and launched another contract, which looks to be promising. I was interviewed by Aric Mitchell a freelancer who also writes for The City Wire about River Valley Business Networkers, fondly called Team RVBN, which I have been managing the social media extensions and public relations for.

Those alone made for a great week, but add in the fact that my Twitter account has gone nuts, Michelle Stockman recommended me calling me a Social Media Guru on LinkedIn and Susan Davis asked me to contribute to her newest mission and invited me on as a contributing writer to www.rivervalleyspotlight.com, only to turn around and call me a social media rock star that she knew she could count on!

What makes me happiest is knowing that I am helping a least a handful of small business owners in my community.

Michelle, my friend and asset to Fort Smith, AR, recommended me to a friend of hers who interviewed me today. As of tomorrow morning I will be the newest addition to the Arkansas Association of Two Year Colleges (AATYC), as the satellite location’s secretary. I am excited about the change and to be going to work in the important industries of education and workforce training.

I have no doubt that the new “hat” will have its share of challenges and that there will be a learning curve of some measure. However, I will be working with professionals who have gone above and beyond to contribute to my community, to my state and to the lives of oh so many people seeking to improve their quality of life.

This position should be a great opportunity to put all of the skills that I have been working to gain and utilize to work for one of the most important causes, as far as I am concerned, out there. Working for AATYC should also be a great fit, as it is a part time position and I will be free to continue to pursue my other dreams.

I will continue to help with the Marketing of Tidbits, the Social Media management of TeamRVBN, writing as the Fort Smith Social Media Examiner and doing Social Media Coaching. It should be fun and if I feared lack of challenge and direction, then those fears are now assuaged.

April 15, 2010, I began writing articles for Examiner.com. I toyed with the idea for a while and talked to many of my friends, family members and neighbor about the idea. One of my least likely supporters was the most excited. I sat with Mr. Hipp, as my son calls him, on my front porch in my rocker telling him about my other new job.

Hipp was excited to hear that someone he considers “real” will be presenting news to the world that can be accepted as real instead of some Hollywood version of reality. He said I should take it one step further and stop trying to help small businesses and fooling around with the internet and just write a book about real people in the neighborhoods of America.

Hipp loves me, is a good man and I have no doubt would kill for me. He doesn’t understand most of what I do, but he understands me and why I do them. His vote of confidence means a lot to me.

Thank you Mr. Hipp for your support and for believing I am a Real Person Being Real.